Therapy
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a talking therapy that focuses on the connections between our thoughts, feelings and behaviours. It has a very strong evidence-base and is recommended as a first-line treatment for a wide range of difficulties.
In your therapy sessions, we'll work as a team to cultivate new insights, highlighting opportunities to experiment with new ways of responding to your difficult thoughts and feelings, allowing you to move forward with greater awareness, flexibility, and confidence.
CBT is a structured approach with an emphasis on experiential learning and tasks between sessions, as opposed to just talking. This may include written exercises, or experiments to test new ways of responding to difficult situations.
It's the first time I've been able to see what's going on. It has taught me to feel more compassionate towards myself.
Anon, 23 (OCD)
Alongside CBT, I offer Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT). CFT is an integrative approach, which emphasises the role of self awareness and compassion in navigating life's challenges. This includes cultivating greater awareness of our minds and bodies, learning how to approach our difficulties with courage, wisdom and commitment.
I'm also trained in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). ACT focuses on strengthening our psychological flexibility. We learn to stand back and observe our thoughts, feelings and impulses, mindfully prioritising what's helpful, directing our energy towards our values and commitments.
Working integratively (using a range of evidence-based approaches) means that I can respond more flexibility to your individual needs.
I was really nervous about accessing therapy but it didn't take long to feel comfortable... It felt like the support was tailored to me.
Anon, 21 (Social Anxiety)
OCD
I specialise in supporting clients with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).
OCD is an umbrella-term for a broad range of experiences. In a nutshell, it describes the presence of repeated, unwanted thoughts, images or urges (obsessions) with repeated physical or mental responses that feel vital to our safety or wellbeing (compulsions). These experiences become a problem when they are a source of distress and impact negatively on our daily lives. You can read more about OCD here: https://ocdaction.org.uk/resources/ocd/
While OCD is a very common and well-known condition, there is still a lot of misunderstanding. Sadly, many clients tell me they have received inadequate care in the past, often from skilled health professionals. Some describe previous therapists who missed their OCD, or provided care that has felt harmful or ineffective. It is important to acknowledge that many skilled and compassionate therapists have not received adequate training and supervision in how to recognise and assess OCD, nor in crucial interventions such as Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) or other contemporary evidence-based approaches.
There are also many myths about OCD, and the one I hear the most often from is, “I know you can’t cure OCD, you can only learn to live with it”. While it is true that we will never eliminate intrusive thoughts, this is because everyone experiences them. Research consistently demonstrates that with an adequate amount of appropriate, evidence-based treatment, we can achieve complete and lasting recovery from OCD.
Ongoing specialist training and supervision in OCD, combined with my own lived experience, means I can offer a depth of understanding that is reassuring for the clients and therapists I work with. I’m able to support clients to stand back and understand how their OCD operates and what maintains it. I’m trained in a range of evidence-based approaches, meaning I can offer something different, even to clients who have accessed CBT or ERP in the past. As a therapist with over 15 years’ training and experience, I can support clients with a wide range of conditions that might co-occur with OCD, including Depression, PTSD, Body Dysmorphia, Shame and self-criticism. Whether you’ve had support in the past, or are seeking it for the first time, I will be committed to supporting you to understand your OCD and achieve lasting recovery.
Alex has helped me to understand my OCD and how to manage it. For the most part, I am now able to lead a normal happy life, which is something I could never have imagined before working with Alex.
Anon, 27 (OCD)
Other things I can help with
I support adults and young people to understand and overcome a wide range of difficulties, including:
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Intrusive thoughts
Low self-esteem
Shame and self-criticism
Compulsive hair pulling / skin picking
Trauma and PTSD
Anxiety / Generalised Anxiety
Depression / low mood
Panic attacks / Agoraphobia
Social Anxiety
Perfectionism
Illness Anxiety Disorder (Health Anxiety)
Body Dysmorphia (BDD)
Specific Phobias (e.g. needles, dogs, vomit)
If you're unsure what you're experiencing, or finding it hard to describe what you're going through, contact me to book a free, confidential 20-minute consultation.
You may also want to arrange an assessment session, where we can explore what you're experiencing in more depth and think about next steps.
Online (video) Therapy
Online therapy allows you to access face-to-face CBT from the comfort of your own home or workplace, wherever you are in the world, making it a convenient, accessible and affordable choice for many clients.
Research has demonstrated that online (video) CBT is a highly effective alternative to traditional in-person therapy. Whether video therapy is a good option for you will depend on your personal preference. In most cases, online CBT is an accessible and effective alternative to in-person treatment.
